Most people treat their monitor like a printer. They just want it to work without having to think about it. But if you work from home or spend hours gaming every night, it's worth an upgrade. And that's where things can get complicated. Do you pay extra for more ports? Or for a large display? How about something with smart features so it can double as a television—or springing for one of those flashy OLED monitors? Those are all worthwhile features, but don't splurge for the latest thing before you know what you're getting into.
If you're looking to upgrade from a basic 1080p monitor you've been using for a decade, I recommend buying the Dell 27 Plus 4K. It's sharp, has good colors, and is shockingly affordable. I knew right when I tested it that it would be unbeatable at its price, and I promise: I won't be offended if you skip all my words and buy that immediately. But if you're shopping around, I have advice ranging from panel types to refresh rate. Let's dive in.
For our full recommendations, check out our Best Monitors and Best Gaming Monitors guides.
Panel Types
For more information on panel types, read our in-depth look at the tech that distinguishes these panel types from each other.
LED
The standard type of monitor panel these days is still LED (light-emitting diodes), which refers to the way the screen is backlit. This isn't the brightest or most color-accurate type of panel, but it's grown into the cheapest and most widely accessible option. Within the category of LED backlighting, there are also a variety of LCD (liquid crystal display) types. IPS (in-plane switching) is the most common, while VA (vertical alignment) is still used in some cheaper creator-focused monitors, and TN (twisted nematic) is available in some lower-end gaming monitors. But IPS has become the standard.
Fortunately, there has been some development on IPS over the years, which improves various elements of the image quality. You'll see “IPS Black” in various LG or Dell monitors, which improves the contrast to closer to 2,000:1. There's even a second version of IPS Black (known as IPS Black 2.0 or Enhanced IPS Black) that claims to push contrast up to 3,000:1. I've also tested Nano IPS, another advanced version of IPS from LG that improves the color gamut. I've tested a 6K monitor that uses Nano IPS Black, combining them all together to produce one of the best IPS displays possible. As good as these are, though, they can't achieve the highs of more advanced forms of backlighting.
OLED
Photograph: Luke Larsen
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